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"It's a simple question," he said plainly. "Deceit and delusion. Have you ever thought about the difference?"
"You were there," I said, a statement not a question, but incredulous nonetheless. "In the attic."
The jinn vanished in a blink and appeared on the other side of me. "I am made of fire and air, Nether one. I am everywhere."
I snorted. "Then why didn't you stop me? Why didn't you save your mage?"
The jinn grinned hungrily. "Where would be the fun in that?"
I blinked and took a hesitant step away. When I realized I was showing weakness, I stopped.
"Deceit and delusion, Tunji. Are you deluding yourself? That you serve this man. That you aren't clawing out from your cesspit and trying to reach heights your brothers never dreamed of. Or were you merely employing deceit? Telling Namadi you were his loyal servant while hitching on his coattails, keeping your true identity and intentions hidden."
"This was a job interview," I concluded.
"Perceptive, again."
The threatening ball of flame in his palm winked out. The jinn slipped his hands into his pockets and leaned against the wall, abandoning any pretense that I could kill him. In truth, I wasn't so sure I could. But he was giving me an opening.
"I'll triple your salary," he said, closing the deal. "Plus bonuses for special jobs. I have other people in place, but Miami's a surprising city. A gateway into this country, loose and wild and corrupt in all the best ways. But also a tough nut to crack. I could use someone with your skill set to speed along my influence."
I relaxed my posture and held my blades loose. As he spoke I moved closer.
"You'll keep your current job, too," he said. "An influential businessman like Namadi is a good one to have under hand. You made a wise choice there. And we'll launder my money through him, of course. Keep those details from him, and do it without a percentage. You'll earn plenty through other means, including what the fool will continue to pay you as his bodyguard. Is that understood?"
I waited a beat. "You're serious."
"Deadly. I have big plans for this city. You could be a part of them."
I licked my lips and wondered if his big plans had included the dead mageling downstairs. Then again, her death had been her own fault.
The jinn stepped forward and offered me an outstretched hand. "What will it be, Tunji? Death or glory?"
He waited for my reply, a statue of unwavering resolve. I considered his hard eyes carefully. He was different from Namadi. More shrewd, more dangerous. Wasn't that the game I was playing?
I worked my jaw again. Considered Pim still smoldering downstairs. Then I recalled the long, endless tunnels of the Nether. The wide-open nothingness of Africa. I recounted how far I'd already come, and foresaw how much further I could still go.
It was all within reach. I just had to take it.
I clasped his hand into mine. "We have a deal."
Delusion. That was one problem I didn't have.
BALANCE
SEANAN McGUIRE
When monsters and men are one and the same, it's up to the cryptozoologists to keep the peace, and keep humanity from understanding that we are not alone. Most of the cryptids in the InCryptid universe are perfectly lovely people. But then there are the cuckoos--telepathic ambush predators who will steal everything you are, and laugh while your world falls apart around you. They live for math. They live for malice. In "Balance," we see that these two things are not always at odds . . .
* * *
"Please. For the sake of humanity, watch for the absences. Watch for the holes. Know the threat is real, and guard against it with your life."
--ALEXANDER HEALY
* * *
A small outdoor cafe in Burbank, California
